Life-saving apparatus.



C. RYDELL.

LIFE SAVING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY a. 19m.

1,201,877. Patented 001;. 17,1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1-,

' C. RYDELL. u re SAVI NG APPARATUS. APPLICATION man JULY 3. 1915.

Patented Oct. 17,1916.

' 3 SHEETS-SHEET 2 avwemtoz C. RYDELL.

LIFE SAVING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 3, I915.

Patented Oct. 17, 1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3 q/vi bmaoozo I CARL BYDELL, MANILA; PHILIPPINE ISLANDS.

LIFE-SAVING APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 17,1916.

Application filed July 3, 1915. Serial No. 37,906.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CARL RYDELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Manila, in the Province of Luzon, Philippine Islands, have invented new and useful Improvements in Life-Saving Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to life saving apparatus and more particularly to the construction of the boats and davits employed upon sea-going vessels.

One of the principal objects of the invention is the provision of an apparatus of this type in which anovel form of boat group and a novel form of davit construction is utilized whereby the boats may be conven iently lowered one by one from each group and rapidly loaded without danger to the passengers. 1

Another object of .the invention is the provision of a novel form of davit construction for lowering the types of boats herein described and which is so constructed and its parts so arranged that a relatively small amount of deck space is occupied and at the same time a sufficient overhang of the hull is provided in lowering.

Further objects of the invention will appear as the following specific description is read in connection with the accompanying drawings which form a part of this application, and in which Figure 1 is a side elevation showing the position of two boat groups with a single davit construction between them. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view through the ship showing the davit construction in rear elevation. Fig. 3 is a' side elevation of the davit construction showing one of the davit arms in raised position and the opposite davit arm in lowered position. Fig. 4: is a horizontal view taken on the line H of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of one of the boat groups. Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a lashing used when lowering the boats to prevent the same from swinging toward and away from the ship in a heavy sea. Fig. 7 is a perspective view of one of the hook blocks.

Before proceeding to describe .the davit construction, I shall describe briefly the construction of the boats which differ essentially from the construction shown in my copending application Serial No. 759,716. In

that construction the air tanks at'the end of the boats were made removable as an entirety and were placed in the top boat so that a they could be removed and attached to the lower boats of the group as these boats were made up for loading and lowering. In the present instance the top boat is complete in itself and is ready for immediate lowering and while this boat is being loaded and lowcred the second boat of the group may be properly made up. During the loading and lowering of the second boat the third boat of the group is made up. While the top boat of the group is made complete in itself' and normally remains in such condition, itis constructed in a similar manner to the other boats of the group, but the remaining lower boats have the bulk heads and top plates forming their air tanks disconnected for providing room whereby the upper boats may be nested therein.

Each of the boats of the group comprise a hull 1, in which suitable thwarts are placed and adajacent each end the hull isprovided on its inner sides with suitably packed guideways, not shown, which receive bulkheads 3. T hose bulk heads together with the deck plates a form air tanks which provide the necessary buoyancy and make the boat substantially unsinkable. To prevent capsizing of the boat there is preferably provided as in the former application suitable air tanks 6 which extend longitudinally of the boat as shown, and which are so placed as not to interfere with the nesting. Each boat is provided with reinforcing joints 7 which extend beneath the hull and terminate above the gunwale where'they are connected by cross rods 8 having eyes 9 formed therein for receiving the hooks of the lowering tackle as will be hereinafter described. The bulk heads, deck plates and other suitable para phernalia, such as thwarts and so forth of thelower boats are packed in the bottom of each boat and serve as a support for the keel of the next superimposed boat. If desirable, these boats may have a cover such as shown in the application formerly mentioned, and may also be supplied with a sea anchor as is disclosed in such application if desired.

It will be understood that each davit con struction embodies independent lowering arms, one of the arms relating to a group upon one side of the davit construction and the other arm relating to the group on the opposite side of the davit construction. The opposite end of the first group referred to is taken care of by another davit construction, say to the right, while the opposite end of the lastgroup referred to is taken care of by another davit construction to the left. Each davit construction consists of two pairs of triangular frames 10 and 11, the members of each pair being connected together at their rear edges by diagonally arranged reinforcing strips or bars 12 and which are open at their front to permit of the passage of the davit arms as will be readily understood. The pairs of frames are connected together by a bridge piece I3 and pivotally mounted between each pair is a davit arm M which carries a pair of substantially triangular braces 15 and I6- arranged upon the front and rear thereof. 7

Each 'davit armhas journal-ed in its outer end a suitable pulley 17 over which passes the lowering cable 18, one endof the cable being connected directly to the da'vit arm as shown at 19, and the oppo'siteendof the cable being run over the pulley 1 7 and connected to a suitable drum 2'0 and 21. Both of these drums are j'ournaled on suitable shafts extending across the davit construction as shown in' Fig. 2, one drum being arranged for the boat group to the right of the davit construction and the other drum beingarranged'for the boat group to the left of the davitconstruction. v

The cable 18 passes over apulley carried by thehiook block 22", which in this instance is of peculiar construction, consisting of a pair of side plates 23 between which the pulley, not shown, is journaled. The lower ends of these sideplates have pivoted betweenthem supporting hook 24 which is normally raised to the position shown in dotted linesin- Fig. 7 by a spiral spring 25 carried upon a transverse pin 26 secured in the cars 27 extending laterally from the side plates. The hook 24 Will be sustained in vertical position as shown in full lines in Fig. 7 when the weight of the boats or one of the boats is supported thereon, but just as soon as the boat engages the water and is floated thereon, the weight will be removed from the hook and the spring will the ship or to man the oars.

act to disconnect the same from the eye 9 and permit a quick cast-away from the side of'the ship without the use of a man' at each end of the boat to disconnect the block. With this type" of construction the menheretofore employed to disconnect. the hooks may be used to holdthe boat" away from In ordert'o raiselor lower the arms 14, there are j ournaled' in the braces 16 suitable stub shafts 28 squared at one end'to receive frames 10 and 11.

Suitable la-sli-ings may be provided for holding the boats in position \vhile being loaded or when in inactive position upon the decks of the vessel, but in order to prevent the boat from swinging toward and away from the vessel while being lowered, I preferably provide a retaining device'which consists of a substantially U-shap'ed plate whose ends are bifurcated to receive the rollers and are also shouldered as at 35 to be retained within the channel-shaped track 36 which extends from the deck to the water line of the vessel.

This plate isprovidedwith arreye 37' to" i Which is connected a turn-buckle 3 8 through the eye bolt 39. turn-buckle has connected thereto a hook bolt 40 which engages with the hook block 22 or a portion of the lowering pin:

l/Vha-t claimed is:

1. In lifesaving apparatus, the combinaplurality of nested boats, of

tion with a framework, pivotally mounted cl avit members' carried by the ried by the framework, cables operating over said drums, hookblocks connected to the cables, means attached to each boat for engagement by the hook blocks whereby the boats may be raised and lowered independently, and means for raising and lowering the davi't members.

21A lifesaving a pparatus including a plurality of sets" of nested boats,- frames arranged intermediate the sets, davit members pivotally mounted on the frame and acting oppositely to cooperate with a particular set, drums carried by the frames, cables cooperating with a' particular drum and with a particular davit, means for operating the d'avits, and each boat to permit the connection cable thereto.

In testimony whereof I afliXmy signature in presence of two witnesses.

CARL RYDELL.

of the Witnessesf JonN L. STEWART, HOWARD Lone.

Copies of'tfii's patentmay'bwobtafnelf for five cents each, by addressing" t'li Commissioner of Patents,

washiiigton. D1 0. r Y

The opposite end of the framework, drums ca'r -means carried by 

